Everyone knows that I am a big entertainment buff, be it commercial cinema, theater or even a film festival showcasing short films. Hence it was not surprising that I once again this year requested my friend, Prerana, at the YES FOUNDATION to allow me to be there at their award ceremony celebrations.
Before I
begin to share the heart warming experience I had, let me tell you what it is
all about. YES, I am the Change is a social program of YES FOUNDATION
which was launched in 2013. The initiative, which I must applaud, brings
together the youth of our country to share social change that they have
witnessed through the medium of short films. Everyone dreams of making films
and it is this platform that spring boards the dreams of many. The initiative
invites people from all walks of life to a challenge where the subject is
shared 6 am in the morning and a deadline of 101-Hour begins to make your film
and submit it. Amateurs and film makers
participate by making social cause films of up to 3 minutes duration and the
wait for the winners begins. This year over 5 lakh entries were received by the
YES FOUNDATION making it the largest movement of showcasing social causes indirectly
leading to an unexplainable change in the film makers themselves turning them
into change agents for society. There were multiple categories in the challenge
such as the Corporate challenge, the Not-for-Profit, Student and the Open
Categories making it the world’s largest social cause movement. What further fascinated me was that all the
films submitted are available for use of Not-for-Profit NGOs and associations
who are unable to make films themselves to use free of cost.
The contest had ended and then came the
day of the awards ceremony that bustled with life at the Nehru Centre on
January 29th where I sat looking at the smiling youth all around me.
Chatting with them I realised that it had not just been about making a film and
submitting it to the jury. It was now about the journey that they traversed to
another world and emerging a better human being that had made them happier. The
evening mood was set by an interesting panel discussion titled “Role of mindset transformation in
nation building” with Meghana Gulzaar, Vikas Bahl, Jacco Cillers, Radha Kapoor
and moderated by Namita Vikas. Interesting inputs from the panellists on how
important it is for the media and film makers to be involved and even more on
being responsible in using their power medium was an interesting take. Chief
Guest Vidya Balan enthralled the audience with her thoughts on the event and referring
to her experience as brand ambassador for the sanitation campaign. Director Umesh
Shukla and other dignatories added charm by gracing the event. For me a personal moment of pride was listening
to my friend Prerana Langa, CEO of YES FOUNDATION taking on stage and leading
her team to a beautiful culmination of a social change film making contest so
lovely and well organized.
However, that was just the end only of Day 1 as it was followed by the
film festival over the next two days at the Indian
School of Design and Innovation conference
hall that showcased the best films of the contest. Sadly I missed the first day due to
prior commitments but Sunday was one of learning with interactive
discussions. Shalabh Sahai, Co-Founder
and Director of iVolunteer and Tom Alter, Actor shared their thoughts and
experiences in the volunteering and cinema space. It was an interesting debate with Cyrus Dastur, the founder of Shamiana Arts
with
Tom Alter, who suggested using real people for
social awareness and documentary films; as he explained how the stance and the
acting poweress stands true when you bring true to life heroes on screen to
perform instead of actors. It was indeed
interesting, and a big thanks to the foundation for giving an opportunity to me
and the young film makers to get up close, as it is not often one gets
opportunities to interact closely with people of such caliber.
The same day, we were introduced to two film makers,
Kuljeet Chaudhary and Leena Kejriwal, who last year had participated in the
film challenge, which had changed their lives making them true agents of
change. Kuljeet
Chaudhary, who won the
last year’s Popular Choice Award for his film “Probably Paradise”, spoke about
his amazing story from a night in Diwali when he and his friends decided to
save animals from abuse starting with a cow whose tail was tied to fire
crackers leading onto him creating a help forum on face book for animal abuse. When
he was asked, what is the one thing an individual can do to help, he put it so
simply and humbly “feed glucose biscuits to stray dogs”. On the other hand,
here was Leena Kejriwal, an avid photographer and artist whose film became a
thought process that has today started a movement she calls “MISSING”. MISSING is an art project that
brings issues of female trafficking onto our walls of public spaces with a
black stencil of a girl made from iron sheets, forged and painted pitch black.
The stark black stencil is hopeful of creating awareness about the millions of
young girls and women who disappear from their homes and are pushed into
the flesh trade in India. Both these amazing human beings are on face book. I certainly made it a point to connect with
them and am seriously contemplating how to get that stencil on a wall soon,
after all I am a woman myself.
The entire day I spent there, I must have seen over twenty or more awesome
films such as ‘The Stand-up Comedian’ on parent care, ‘Dua’ about elderly care,
‘Ehsaas’ about a rickshawalla who teaches act of kindness, ‘Muted’ about
beggars stuck in silence forever, ‘Boxes’ about learning beyond education and
many more. It was indeed a Sunday well spent. Me, not a film maker and just an ordinary person never felt more
involved and touched by the films that showcased so many causes that we never
can even imagine. It got me thinking as
to how much do I contribute to society. Well, yes I do in my own small little way by volunteering
with friends doing social work, but this movement got me thinking. Films are such a powerful medium to spread
the magic word and so I decided that I am going to be a change maker of sorts myself. I
have started doing my bit by sharing one film every two or three days on my
face book page and if I touch even ten friends a day, I think I have succeeded
in creating a small little twinge in a heart somewhere…. And I am sure that somewhere,
sometime, someplace that heart I touched will reach out to another and thereon
another and we will be on our way to a better happier place.
